Work Role Identity and Leadership Behavior

Abstract

We examined the new Work Role Orientation Scale (WROS) for women (Gurman, Wekselberg, & Long, in press). Specifically, we hypothesized that the WROS would correlate with leadership performance. The WROS and the Bern Sex Role Identity Scale (BSRI; Bem, 1974) were given to 96 female undergraduates, after which they performed three discussion tasks. We found that WROS was significantly related to peer leadership ratings, whereas the BSRI was not, suggesting that the WROS may be useful in predicting successful leadership among women in certain situations.